James king



(No Model.)

J. KING. BUGGY TOP ATTACHMENT.

No. 473,758. Patented Apr. 26, 1892.

' m: mums runs 00., mmcmywu, WASNINGTO UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES KING, OF GAINES STATION, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO FRANK KING, OF SAME PLACE.

BUGGY-TOP ATTACHMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 473,? 58, dated April 26, 1892.

Application filed July so. 1891.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES KING, a citizen of the United States, residing at Gaines Station, in the county of Genesee and State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful Buggy-Top Attachment, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an attachment for buggy-tops, the objects in view being to provide a cheap and simple device adapted to be clamped upon the top-supporting rails of buggies and to be connected with the opposite main braces adjacent to the knee-joints thereof, and to be manipulated from the inside of the buggy for the purpose of breaking or setting such knee-joints, whereby the top may be lowered and raised from within the buggy, thus avoiding the necessity of getting out of the same for this purpose.

WVith the above main objects in view the invention consists in certain novel details of construction hereinafter specified, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a buggy-top provided with my attachment. Fig. 2 is a detail in perspective of the attachment. Fig. 3 is alongitudinal section of Fig. 2.

Like numerals of reference indicate like parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates the top-supporting rail of a buggy, to which is pivoted at the rear end thereof the lower end of the main top-supporting brace 2, the same being provided intermediate its ends with the usual knee-j oint and connected at its upper end to the buggytop proper 3. In constructing the attachment I provide a pair of top-rail-elnbracing plates 4, which plates are, together with the upwardly-bent end of an L-shaped bracket 5, securely riveted together. Below the bend in the bracket the plates are diverged, as at 6, to embrace the rail, and below their point of contact with the rail are provided with bolt-openings 7, through which apair of bolts are passed for the purpose of clamping the plates in position upon the rail. 8 the plates may be applied, and after properly adjusting the plates the bolts may be inserted and tightened.

By removing the bolts erial No. 401.195. (N0 model.)

The L-shaped bracket is laterally and inwardly disposed, and at its inner extremity is provided with a bearing-h1g9. The bearinglug corresponds with a bearing perforation 10, formed through the riveted portions of the plates and bracket, and in the bearing lug and perforation a rocking bolt 11 is passed and extends beyond the same. The inner end of the bolt has applied thereto, and in this instance is secured in position by a nut 12, a handle-lever 13, through the medium of which the rocking bolt may be operated.

let designates the trip bar or rod, and the same terminates at its lower end in a perforation or eye 15, which receives the bolt, and is located between the head 16 thereof and the clamping-plates. The rod extends upwardly at the outside of the top, and by a clip 17,

embracing the main brace immediately below the knee-joint and pivoted to the clip-bar, a loose connection between the brace and bar is formed.

In practice an attachment as herein described is employed to connect each of the top-supportingrails with the main side braces, and the operation of raising and lowering a top from within a buggy is as follows: By grasping the handle-lever and pressing the same to the rear the bolt upon which the same is mounted is rocked or oscillated, and through the medium of the trip-bar the joint of the brace is broken. It now simply requires that the top be pressed back by hand to its rear orlowered position. In order to raise the top, the same is brought forward by hand, which latter operation may be readily carried on without leaving the buggy, after which the handle-levers are swung to the front, which serves to set the joints of the braces and hence lock the top in an elevated position.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that the operation of raising and lowering buggy-tops may be carried on with facility and case without the necessity of leaving the vehicle, and that the attachment may be placed upon any of the top-supporting side rails in ordinary use. By the employment of such an attachment not only is the convenience and comfort of the passenger catered to, but also his safety, in that many railroad-accidents will be prevented by reason of the ease and dispatch with which the top may be lowered and reraised, thus permitting the occupant to glance up or down a railroad-track for the purpose of seeing that the crossing is clear, whereas, on the other hand, such precaution would not be observed if it were necessary for the occupant to go to the trouble of leaving the buggy for the purpose of inspection and raising and lowering the top.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. The herein-described attachment for the purpose specified, the same consisting of a bracket having its ends upturned and perforated to form opposite transverse bearings and having upon its under side depending seatrail-embracing plates, with means for securing the same to the top-supporting rail ofabuggy, a rocking bolt mounted in the bearings of the bracket and terminating at its inner end in a bolt-operating handle-lever, and a rod mounted upon the outer end of the bolt and adapted at its upper end for loose connection with the side brace of a buggy-top adja cent to the knee-joint thereof, substantially as specified. I

2. The combination, with the top-supporting rail, the top, and the jointed side brace,

of the herein-described attachment, the same consisting of the opposite clamping-plates, the L-shaped laterally-disposed bracket, which at its bent end is riveted with the clampingplates and at its inner end is provided with an eye laterally opposite a bearing perforation formed in the clamping-plates and outer bent end of the bracket, said clamping-plates being diverged at their lower ends and perforated and mounted upon and embracing the top-supporting rail, clamping-bolts mounted in the perforations below the rail, a rocking bolt mounted in the bearings of the bracket and plates, a handle-lever located at the in ner end of the rocking bolt, a nut for securing the lever, a trip-rod terminating at its lower end in an eye receiving the bolt and located between the head of the latter-and the clamping-plates, and the U-shaped clip embracing the brace immediately below thekneejoint thereof and pivoted loosely to the upper end of the trip-rod, substantially as specified. In testimony that Iclaim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

J AMES KING. Witnesses:

FRANK. KING, A. DEWITT. 

